"I like them, too."
But I'd much rather have this kind of attention from Angelo instead.
Five
Angelo
It wasthe best day of my life.
Was that weird? Going out for brunch, feeding some reindeer and checking out Christmas festivities with my sexy co-worker... I doubted most people would find this as fun as I did. But I didn't care. The time I spent with Karl was incredible. I never wanted it to end.
As the day wore on and the sun crept closer to the horizon, snow drifted from the sky. Soon a fresh layer of white covered the world, adding to the festive charm. When the snowfall grew heavier, the flakes dense and fat, everyone else dispersed. Karl and I were alone on the street. I wanted that moment to be frozen in time. The warm lights in the darkening twilight, the cold snow, the feeling that we were the only people in the world—it almost felt...
Romantic.
The sound of harmonic voices floated from around the corner. I recognized them instantly.
"Carolers! Can we go see them, Karl?"
He'd never once said no, but I always asked to give him the option to say no. I didn't want to steamroll the whole day with my wants. I wanted both of us to have fun. But Karl always indulged me, doing what I wanted to do. He didn't just play Santa at work—he really was that kind in real life, too.
"Sure," he said, smiling. But then he checked his watch and paused. "But after that, I should get going."
It was selfish of me, but I tried not to be disappointed even though we'd spent all day together. I reminded myself that it was natural that two people—co-workers who'd only known each other for a few days—would eventually go home and tend to their own business. I couldn't expect Karl to be by my side every waking moment, especially when he wasn't even my boyfriend.
"Oh, sure," I said, forcing a smile. "It has been a long day, hasn't it?"
Was it just me, or did Karl look pained? My heart sank. I hoped I wasn't dragging him along, forcing him to be here when he didn't want to be. But he'd been so enthusiastic and happy today. I found it hard to believe that it was faked.
"No, not at all," Karl said firmly, confirming my belief that his feelings today were real. "It's that second job I told you about. My shift begins in an hour, so..."
"I get it, don't worry. Can't help work, right?"
Karl held my gaze for a long moment. Then he smiled. "But first, let's check out these carolers."
My heart skipped as we gathered in front of the group of carolers. We were the only two people in the audience, so in a way it felt like a private performance just for us. I sighed contently as the music washed over us, and the snow drifted down.
At one point I noticed I'd moved closer to Karl without realizing it. Our arms were touching. I blushed, then felt silly for reacting to such an innocent thing.
But then I felt Karl's finger brush my hand. We'd put our gloves back on after feeding the reindeer, so at first, I thought it was simply my imagination. Then I risked a glance down at our hands and saw it.
Karl bumped my hand on purpose. His pinky finger intertwined with mine, deliberately curling around it.
My cheeks burned up. That was no accident. I suddenly forgot about the carolers and stared at Karl, who wore a wry smile. Then he grasped my hand. I sucked in a soft gasp of shock, then promptly stopped breathing. I went dizzy from the realization that we wereholding hands.
Was this a dream?
But gazing into Karl's dark, black-silver eyes reminded me this was reality.
The caroler’s song faded into the background. At that moment, Karl felt like everything to me. It was me and him in this beautiful twilight snowscape.
My heart slipped on ice and tumbled. It pounded in my chest as I met Karl's eyes. They were focused on me.
My blood ran hot and wild. I wanted to kiss him so badly. But this was no Christmas movie. Things like that didn't justhappenin real life.
Karl leaned in, inch by inch. Without noticing, I'd pushed myself up onto the balls of my feet. When did we get so close? I shivered as I felt his warm breath ghost across my face.
Karl kissed me.
